It’s not hard to do a quick scan of the internet and find articles such as this one . With absolutely ZERO evidence present, this article comes to the conclusion that pitbulls are not only the most dangerous breed, but have been known to “attack children, the elderly, their owners – anyone that happens to be in their path.”

This is absolutely insane!

How did pitbulls get such a bad rap in society? There must be a good reason for all this hate. There must be some indisputable scientific evidence to support these claims… **crickets**

Here are some common misconceptions about pitbulls that are just flat out incorrect:

Pitbulls are the most aggressive breed: This statement is incorrect. Scientific research has proven that pit bulls are not the most aggressive breed. Surprisingly, smaller dogs are actually proven to be more vicious than larger breeds, such as pitbulls. A study by The American Veterinary Medical Association claims that ” a survey of general veterinary clientele in Canada identified Lhasa Apso, Springer spaniel and Shih Tsu as more likely to bite.”

Bite statistics is reliable evidence that pitbulls are “vicious”: Commonly the number one source used by people who are anti-pitbull, are the bite statistics. Yes, pitbulls statistically are the leader in dog bites. However, one could make the argument that these statistics are flawed, because the way people label pitbulls is flawed. Many people believe that the term “pitbull” refers to one specific breed, but it does not. The term “pitbull” refers to several different breeds. There are even more “bully breeds” that aren’t even part of the pitbull family, but get grouped in with the breed. Of course the number of pitbull bites will be high. If a dog bites someone and looks similar to a pitbull, then it will be labeled a pitbull attack. Genetic tests are the only way to correctly identify a breed. The human eye is not a reliable source when it comes to labeling dog breeds.

As you can see, a lot of the common stereotypes that surround pitbulls are false. I believe that a huge reason for the negative stigma surrounding pitbulls is the lack of correct information that people have available to them. All people ever hear about is negative stories about pitbulls biting people, and because these stories people just assume the worst about pitbulls. However if you keep an open mind and look at the facts, you will see that pitbulls are just like any other dogs. With a good owner, any dog can thrive and be a “good dog”.